1) Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a row cleaner for an opener on an agricultural implement, and more specifically, to a linkage for supporting the row cleaner.
2) Related Art
Row units for grain drills of the type shown in U.S. Pat. No. 5,341,754 include a forwardly located row cleaner device for clearing material such as straw, weeds, stubble and other debris from the row line in the path of an opener to facilitate formation of a furrow. Each row cleaner includes two converging disks pivotally connected to the frame by a parallel linkage including upper and lower links that allow the cleaner to pivot vertically. A spring extends between opposite comers of the links to provide a constant down pressure of the wheels against the ground.
One problem with such a cleaner device is that the cleaner wheels are always in contact with the ground during field-working operations unless the operator manually removes the device or locks the device in a raised position. Also, when the implement row units are raised to the transport position, the cleaner wheels tend to drop to the lowermost position and the offset between the wheels and the ground is very small so that undesirable ground contact during transport and during turns in the field is common. The previous row cleaning devices have also lacked a down pressure adjustment that is easy to operate. Presently, changing down pressure requires individual time-consuming adjustment or replacement of springs on the linkages.